There are more book bans in Florida than any other state. House Bill 1539 could make that number increase.
A bill that would make it easier to remove books from schools is making its way through the Florida Capitol.
The bill passed through the Education and Employment committee Thursday morning by a 13-4 vote.
The bill aims to define what is “harmful to minors” and revises the current review process for instructional materials.
Critics say the bill could weaken the Miller Test, which says educational, literary and artistic value of a book must be considered when determining potential removal.
The test was developed in 1973 and has long been the United States Supreme Court’s test for determining obscenity.
Jason Reynolds is a New York Times Best-Selling author who spoke at a press conference hosted by the Florida Freedom to Read Project in opposition of the bill.
“This is a conversation about whether or not children get to know what should not be a secret kept from them,” Reynolds said.
Florida leads the nation in book bans, according to PEN America. Last November, the Florida Department of education released a list of over 700 books that were removed from school districts. It was an increase from the previous school year.
Legislation signed by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis restricted content on LGBTQ+ and race-related content in schools.
Stephana Ferrell co-founded the Florida Freedom to Read Project. Ferrell said she’s concerned of the bill’s impact on public school students. She said that non-compliant districts could get their funding revoked.
“The state government will literally get to decide which books stay, and which books go,” Ferrell said.
The bill is now headed to the House floor.
One Response to “Florida bill could give the state more control over book bans”
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Banning books was one of the first actions taken by Nazi’s in Germany, just prior to the start of war. They wanted to control people and what they should know and read and think.